Slam Out Loud (SOL) is an initiative that deeply believes that something as fundamental as finding our voice, being able to express ourselves, should be accessible to individuals from all walks of life. SOL works at the intersection of art, education and leadership development by bringing the transformational power of the arts to disadvantaged children. The nature of their work involves interaction with artists and children of various ages as well as socioeconomic and religious backgrounds. A strong bridge between faiths is essential in the success of these engagements. Members believe that it is integral that all the members of Slam Out Loud (whether core team members, volunteer artists, or children) feel safe, accepted, and loved within the working environment and other interactions. This becomes especially important when the engagements involve children from disadvantaged communities, where differences of religion might be negatively highlighted in other contexts on a regular basis.
When asked about highlights, members share that: First, 30 skilled and dedicated artists were inducted as the third cohort of the Jijivisha Fellowship. Using poetry, theatre, storytelling, and visual arts, these artists were placed in 28 learning spaces around Delhi NCR to engage directly in a year-long journey of socioemotional learning with 800+ children. Second, in the first week of October they celebrated the joy of giving, Daan Utsav! They conducted 80 arts-based workshops across the city, with 70 artists generously sharing their talents with more than 1500 students across Delhi NCR. Third, in January 2019, 10 kids from Slam Out Loud were invited to Spoken Fest, India’s premier spoken word festival, where they performed for an audience of 10,000. While the children shared the stage with the likes of Jim Sarbh, Indian Ocean, and Alok Vaid Menon, they also facilitated a packed workshop for festival attendees. For many weeks after the festival, their performance garnered messages of appreciation by Spoken Fest attendees and performers alike.
